Advanced recording options for interactive media guidance application systems

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for advanced recording options in interactive media guidance applications pertaining to whether a program includes commercials, has a particular aspect ratio, is a director&#39;s cut, or is unrated. The interactive media guidance application receives a user input to search for and record a program with one or more recording attributes, including an input designating that an attribute be required, preferred, or preferred in multiple copies. In one method, the interactive media guidance application retrieves media guidance information data for the program from memory, determines if the program has the desired recording attribute, and if so, records the program. In another method, the interactive media guidance application records the first available program which has all required recording attributes, and then continues to search for and record more-preferred versions.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention is directed to advanced recording options in interactivemedia guidance applications. Interactive media guidance applications,such as interactive television program guides, are well known in theart.

In recent years, many trends have challenged the functionality ofexisting interactive media guidance applications. For example, it hasbecome common for studios to release multiple versions of a movie, e.g.,widescreen versions, director's cuts, unrated versions. Similarly, ithas become common for programs to be broadcast or made available invarying formats, often without commercial interruptions. Due to theseand other trends, interactive media guidance applications may nowencounter several different versions of the same program. The prevalenceof these and other new program variations has created a need for moreadvanced recording options.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention is directed to systems for and methods of recording basedon one or more of four different recording attributes. The fourrecording attributes indicate whether a program is: (1) the originallyreleased version or some other release such as a director's cut; (2) arated version or an unrated version; (3) a commercial-free version orone with commercials; or (4) presented in normal 4:3 aspect ratio, orsome other aspect ratio such as 16:9 or 2.35:1 “widescreen.” Once theuser selects one or more of the above attributes, the interactive mediaguidance application will only record a program if it possesses thoseattributes. In some embodiments, a recording with any of these optionsmay also be used to replace already recorded programs.

This invention is also directed to systems for and methods by which auser may designate one or more of the above recording attributes to be“preferred.” In one embodiment, the interactive media guidanceapplication records the first available version of that program, andthen determines if it possesses all preferred attributes. If therecording does not possess all preferred attributes, the interactivemedia guidance application then searches for and records amore-preferred version, and deletes the less-preferred previousrecording, i.e. replaces the previous recording with the newer,more-preferred recording.

In the above embodiment, if multiple programs are available at once, theinteractive media guidance application will record the program that ismost preferred based on its attributes. In each case, after the firstrecording, the interactive media guidance application will continue tosearch for and record more-preferred versions until it records a versionof the program which possesses all the preferred attributes.

In another embodiment, the user may direct the interactive mediaguidance application to collect multiple copies of programs based on oneor more of the recording attributes. In such a case, the interactivemedia guidance application searches for and records the first availableversion of the program. If multiple versions were available at once, andeach possessed an attribute with regards to which the user prefersmultiple copies, the interactive media guidance application would thenattempt to record both. For example, if the user prefers multiple copiesbased on aspect ratio, the interactive media guidance application wouldrecord the first available program. Where that first available programwas broadcast in normal 4:3 aspect ratio, the interactive media guidanceapplication would then search for and record any other more-preferredversions of that program that were also in 4:3 aspect ratio, and replacethe previous 4:3 recording. Additionally, the interactive media guidancesystem would search for and record any versions of that program thatwere in other aspect ratios (such as 16:9), but would only replace priorrecordings that had the same aspect ratio. Thus, the interactive mediaguidance system would attempt to save one recording for each availableaspect ratio which had all other preferred attributes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other features of the present invention, its nature andvarious advantages will be more apparent upon consideration of thefollowing detailed description, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an illustrative interactive media distributionsystem, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows an illustrative display screen showing a future recordingoptions overlay accessed from the program guide, in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 shows an illustrative display screen showing a live recordingoptions overlay accessed while viewing the program to be recorded, inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 shows an illustrative display screen showing a series recordingoptions overlay, in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 shows an illustrative display screen showing an advancedrecording options overlay, in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 6 shows a flow chart of an illustrative process for identifying andrecording a program with advanced recording attributes, in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 shows a flow chart of an illustrative process for recording aless-preferred version of a program and then replacing that with amore-preferred version, in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 8 shows a flow chart of an illustrative process for continuallysearching for and recording more-preferred versions of a program untilthe most-preferred version is obtained, in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 shows a flow chart of an illustrative process for determiningwhich version of a program is more preferred, in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Although the embodiments described below may refer to recording inbroadcast digital or analog television systems, it is to be clearlyunderstood that the systems and methods of the invention may be usedwith any suitable video or audio content (e.g., on-demand or recordedcontent) in any suitable media system (e.g., radio-frequency broadcast,cable, satellite, on-demand, and IPTV system).

FIG. 1 shows illustrative interactive media distribution system 100 inaccordance with one embodiment of the invention. User equipment 110receives media in the form of signals from media source 120 overcommunications path 122. In practice there may be multiple media sources120 and user equipment 110, as well as multiple communication paths 122,but only one of each has been shown in FIG. 1 to avoid over-complicatingthe drawing.

Media source 120 may be any suitable media source such as, for example,a cable system headend, satellite media distribution facility, mediabroadcast facility, Internet protocol television (IPTV) headend,on-demand server (e.g., VOD server), website, game service provider(e.g., for online gaming), or any other suitable facility or system fororiginating or distributing media. Media source 120 may be configured totransmit signals over any suitable communications path 122 including,for example, a radio-frequency broadcast path, a satellite path, afiber-optic path, a cable path, an Internet path, or any other suitablewired or wireless path. The signals may carry any suitable media suchas, for example, television programs, games, music, news, web services,video, or any other suitable media. In some embodiments, media source120 may include control circuitry for executing the instructions of aninteractive media guidance application such as, for example an onlineinteractive media guidance application.

User equipment 110 may include any equipment suitable for providing aninteractive media experience. User equipment 110 may include televisionequipment such as a television, set-top box, recording device, videoplayer, user input device (e.g., remote control, keyboard, mouse, touchpad, touch screen or voice recognition interface), or any other devicesuitable for providing an interactive media experience. For example,user equipment 110 may include a DCT 2000, 2500, 5100, 6208 or 6412set-top box provided by Motorola, Inc. In some embodiments, userequipment 110 may include computer equipment, such as a personalcomputer with a television card (PCTV). In some embodiments, userequipment 110 may include a fixed electronic device such as, forexample, a gaming system (e.g., x-Box, PlayStation, or GameCube) or aportable electronic device, such as a portable DVD player, a portablegaming device, a cellular telephone, a PDA, a music player (e.g., MP3player), or any other suitable fixed or portable device.

In the example of FIG. 1, user equipment 110 includes at least controlcircuitry 118, display device 112, user input device 114, and storagedevice 116 which may be implemented as separate devices or as a singledevice.

Display device 112 may be any suitable device such as, for example, atelevision monitor, a computer monitor, or a display incorporated inuser equipment 110 (e.g., a cellular telephone or portable music playerdisplay). Display device 112 displays the media transmitted by mediasource 120 over path 122, and the displays of the interactive mediaguidance application. Display device 112 may also be configured toprovide for the output of audio.

Storage device 116 may include a hard drive (e.g., one or more ATA,SCSI, IDE, or IEEE 1394 drives), digital video recorder (DVR), personalvideo recorder (PVR), or any other device capable of storing mediacontent. Control circuitry 118 may access stored content (e.g., programsand movies) on storage device 116 and cause the content to be presentedon display device 112 at any suitable time. Storage device 116 mayinclude one or more tuners. In some embodiments, storage device 116 maybe omitted. In other embodiments, storage device 116 may be at a remotelocation, for example a server co-located with media source 120 or datasource 124.

Control circuitry 118 is adapted to receive user inputs from inputdevice 114 and execute the instructions of the interactive mediaguidance application. Control circuitry 118 may include one or moretuners (e.g., analog or digital tuners), encoders and decoders (e.g.,MPEG decoders), processors (e.g., Motorola 68000 or MIPS familyprocessors), memory (e.g., RAM and hard disks), communications circuitry(e.g., cable modem circuitry), input/output circuitry (e.g., graphicscircuitry), connections to the various devices of user equipment 110,and any other suitable component for providing analog or digital mediaprogramming, program recording, and interactive media guidance features.In some embodiments, control circuitry 118 may be included as part ofone of the devices of user equipment 110 such as, for example, part ofdisplay 112 or any other device (e.g., a set-top box, television andvideo player).

Control circuitry 118 may direct tuners to tune, acquire, and decode anysuitable content accessible by user equipment 110. For example, userequipment 110 may include both an analog tuner used to acquire analogtelevision signals and a digital tuner used to acquire and decodedigital television signals. Control circuitry 118 may store or bufferone or more frames of video from the tuners to memory or to storagedevice 116 at any suitable time. In addition, memory or storage device116 may include one or more pre-stored buffers (e.g., circular buffers)of audio or video, graphics, advertising, or any other suitable content.Control circuitry 118 may cause the stored frames, pre-stored buffer,audio, or video to be displayed or presented on display device 112 atany suitable time (e.g., after some user input from user input device114).

In some embodiments, user equipment 110 may also include graphicscircuitry (e.g., incorporated within control circuitry 118). Thegraphics circuitry may include video and/or audio transcoding circuitry,one or more graphics processors, memory, and various display outputs(e.g., S-Video and composite video outputs). The graphics circuitry mayalso include video compression and scaling codecs or circuitry to scalethe input from the tuners (or from some other device, such as storagedevice 116) to a resolution or size other than the input's nativeresolution or size. For example, using the graphics circuitry, the inputto the tuners may be displayed at a smaller size on display device 112than their native size in order for program listings information to bepresented with the tuner content on the same display screen. As anotherexample, the graphics circuitry may present full-motion or still framethumbnail windows corresponding to one or more tuner inputs on the samedisplay screen. The graphics circuitry may scale one video input at atime or scale more than one video input simultaneously. For example, inuser equipment with two tuners the inputs of both of the tuners may bescaled simultaneously so that these inputs may be displayed together onthe same display screen in real-time (perhaps with program listingsinformation, content suggestions, or other suitable information).

In some embodiments, the interactive media guidance application mayprovide features to the user with a client/server approach. There may beone server for each instance of user equipment 110, one for multipleinstances of user equipment 110, or a single server may serve as a proxyfor each instance of user equipment 110.

Any suitable number of users may have equipment, such as user equipment110, connected to media source 120 and data sources 124. Any single useror household can have a plurality of instances of user equipment 110.But for the clarity of the figure, the equipment of only a single useris shown. The equipment of the plurality of users may be connected tomedia source 120 and data source 124 using a cable television network, asatellite television network, a local area network (LAN), a wirelessnetwork, the Internet, or any other suitable means. In some embodiments,the equipment of the plurality of users may be connected to each otherusing any suitable means.

User equipment 110 may receive interactive media guidance applicationdata from one or more data sources 124. Data sources 124 may providedata for a particular type of media or for a particular application. Forexample, one data source 124 may provide data for non-on-demand media(e.g., non-pay and pay-per-view programs), and another may provide datafor on-demand media (e.g., VOD programs). Or, for example, a single datasource may provide both of these types of data. For example, one datasource 124 may provide data for an interactive television program guide.Another data source 124 may, for example, provide data for anotherinteractive application (e.g., a home shopping application). In someembodiments, data sources 124 may provide data to the interactive mediaguidance application using a client/server approach. There may be oneserver per data source, one for all sources or, in some embodiments, asingle server may communicate as a proxy between user equipment 110 andvarious data sources 124. In some embodiments, data sources 124 mayprovide data as an online interactive media guidance application. Insuch embodiments, data source 124 may include control circuitry forexecuting the instructions of the online media guidance application. Inother embodiments, data sources 124 may provide data as to specificprogram attributes. In such embodiments, program attribute data may beused to enable advanced recording options based on the aspect ratio of aprogram, or whether a program is commercial-free, is a director's cut,or is unrated.

FIG. 1 shows media source 120 and data sources 124 as separate elements.In practice, their functionality may be combined and provided from asingle system at a single facility, or multiple systems at multiplefacilities. For example, one media source 120 and data source 124 may becombined to provide VOD content and associated VOD data.

FIG. 2 shows a recording options overlay which the interactive mediaguidance application may display on top of the program guide when arecord request is made. In some embodiments, this overlay may be reachedby selecting an option on one or more preceding overlays. In response tothe selection of option 201, the interactive media guidance applicationmay display additional overlay screens for advanced recording options(FIG. 5).

FIG. 3 shows a recording options overlay which the interactive mediaguidance application may display on top of the program to be recordedwhen a record request is made. In some embodiments, this overlay may bereached by selecting an option on one or more preceding overlays. Inresponse to the selection of option 301, the interactive media guidanceapplication may display additional overlay screens for advancedrecording options (FIG. 5).

FIG. 4 shows a series recording options overlay which the interactivemedia guidance application may display in response to a series recordingrequest. In some embodiments, this overlay may be reached by selectingan option on one or more preceding overlays. In response to theselection of option 401, the interactive media guidance application maydisplay additional overlay screens for advanced recording options (FIG.5).

FIG. 5 shows an advanced recording options overlay which the interactivemedia guidance application may display in response to the selection ofoptions 201 or 301 from the recording options overlay (FIGS. 2 & 3) oroption 401 from the series recording options overlay (FIG. 4), and whichallows the user to designate whether the program or series to berecorded be commercial-free, of a certain aspect ratio, a director'scut, or unrated. In some embodiments, this overlay may be reached byselecting an option on one or more preceding overlays. This figure showsone possible embodiment, where the interactive media guidanceapplication has displayed the advanced recording options overlay inresponse to the selection of an option in the recording options overlay.In other embodiments, the interactive media guidance application maydisplay the advanced recording options overlay in response to optionsselected on other screens or through the use of a dedicated button onthe user equipment 110, such as the remote control or set-top box.

In the example of FIG. 5, each attribute has two or more settings. Forexample, the aspect ratio attribute 503 may have settings for “anywidescreen,” 4:3, 16:9, 2.35:1, etc. Similarly, the commercialsattribute 501 may have more settings than just “commercials” or“commercial-free” depending on the program. For example, if a programhad commercials which played at the beginning or end, but had nocommercial interruptions, there may be such a setting in the commercialsattribute 501. In addition, if more than one director's cut or unratedversion were released, there may be such a setting in either of the“directors cut” attribute 505 or “rated/unrated” attribute 507. Thus, insome embodiments, the available options for each recording attribute maybe determined based on the program to be recorded. In other embodiments,the available options may be the same for all programs or for allprograms of a certain type (e.g., sports, movies, sitcoms, etc.).

For the purposes of illustration, FIG. 5 shows an example where someattributes are required and others are preferred. Where, as here, thereare multiple preferred attributes, each attribute is ranked in terms ofits preference relative to the other attributes. Thus, a program versionwhich has the attribute ranked “1” is more preferred than a versionwhich only has the attribute ranked “2.” In addition, some attributesmay be set to “required,” in which case the interactive media guidanceapplication will not record any version of that program which does notpossess that recording attribute.

Thus, in the example of FIG. 5, the commercial-free attribute 501 isaccorded a preference 502 of “required.” Therefore in this embodiment,the interactive media guidance application will not record any versionsof the program which are not commercial free. By contrast, the aspectratio attribute 503 is set to “any widescreen” and is accorded a “record& replace” preference 502 with value 510 of “1.” Similarly, theRated/Unrated attribute 507 is set to “unrated” and has been accorded a“record & replace” preference 508 with value 512 of “2.” Thus, in thisexample, the interactive media guidance application will record thefirst available version of the program which is commercial-free, butthen will seek to replace that initial version with a version which hasone or more of the preferred attributes until it obtains a version whichis commercial-free, widescreen, and unrated. Lastly, the “Director'sCut” attribute 505 is set to “either” and is not accorded a preferenceattribute 506 or value 511. Therefore, in this embodiment, theinteractive media guidance application will not consider the director'scut attribute when determining whether to record a version of theprogram.

As an alternative example of FIG. 5, the “Director's Cut” attribute 505(or the other attributes) may be set to “multiple copies” (i.e.preferred in multiple copies). In contrast with a preference setting of“either” (as explained above) where the interactive media guidanceapplication will simply record the first available copy with any variantof that recording attribute (and only maintain one copy), a “multiplecopies” setting directs the interactive media guidance application tocollect one copy with each variant of that recording attribute. In otherwords, if the “Director's Cut” attribute 505 was set to “multiplecopies” (i.e. preferred in multiple copies), the interactive mediaguidance application would record the first available director's cutversion which has all required attributes, and the first availableversion which is not a director's cut which has all required attributes.It would then replace each of those copies with more preferred versionsuntil it obtains two optimal versions: one which is commercial-free,widescreen, unrated, and a director's cut, and one which iscommercial-free, widescreen, unrated, and not a director's cut. When anattribute has been designated as being preferred in multiple copies, ifthe user equipment has multiple tuners and if complementary copies aresimultaneously available, they may be recorded simultaneously. Forexample, if the user prefers multiple copies of the aspect ratioattribute, and a normal aspect ratio and widescreen version aresimultaneously broadcast on two channels, they may both be recorded.

In other embodiments, the advanced recording options may be set asdefaults from this or another overlay. Additionally, the interactivemedia guidance application may infer preferred or required advancedrecording options from the user's recording and viewing history. Theoverlay screens shown in FIGS. 2-5 are presented for purposes ofillustration and not of limitation, and the present invention may beimplemented through any suitable interface, with or without direct userinput.

FIG. 6 shows a flow chart of an illustrative process for recording basedon advanced recording options. In step 601, the interactive mediaguidance application receives the advanced recording options. In thisembodiment, the options would be required or not required (i.e. thereare no options for “preferred,” “record & replace” setting, or “multiplecopies” settings). In step 602, the interactive media guidanceapplication searches the program listings for a program which has allrequired attributes, and once found, schedules that program to berecorded in step 603 on storage device 116, on a remote storage (e.g.,network DVR), or any other suitable location.

The above process for recording based on advanced recording options mayapply to an individual program or a series. When applied to a series,steps 601-603 would be executed separately for each episode of theseries.

FIG. 7 shows a flow chart of an illustrative process for replacing aless-preferred version of a program with a more-preferred version basedon a specific attribute. For example, the most-preferred version may beone that is commercial-free. However, this process may be used with anyother recording attribute. In step 701, the interactive media guidanceapplication receives the advanced recording options. In step 702, theinteractive media guidance application records a copy of the desiredprogram. In step 703, the interactive media guidance applicationassesses the recording to determine whether it has the preferredattribute. If it is not, in step 704, the interactive media guidanceapplication identifies a version of the program which has that preferredattribute. Then, in step 705, the interactive media guidance applicationrecords the version with the preferred attribute and replaces the firstrecording with that newly-recorded version.

In other embodiments, the process shown in FIG. 7 may be ordereddifferently. For example, the interactive media guidance application maydetermine the program is not commercial-free prior to recording it.Then, it may search for a commercial-free version with which to replacethe first recording. A similar example is shown in FIG. 8.

The above processes for replacing a less-preferred version of a programwith a more-preferred version based on a specific attribute, may applyto an individual program or a series. When applied to a series, steps701-705 would be executed separately for each episode of the series. Inaddition, in any of the above processes, if a recording is made, it maybe recorded on storage device 116, on a remote storage (e.g., networkDVR), or any other suitable location.

FIG. 8 shows a flow chart of an illustrative process for recording andreplacing based on preferred recording attributes. This example applieswhere advanced recording options have been activated for multiplerecording attributes, and takes into account the possibility of thatthere may be more than one preferred attribute as well as attributespreferred in multiple copies. In step 801, the interactive mediaguidance application receives the advanced recording options. Then, instep 802, the interactive media guidance application searches theimmediately available program listings for the desired program (e.g.,the current database of listings stored in storage device 116 (FIG. 1)).If the program is not in the immediate program listings, the interactivemedia guidance application waits until listings are updated 810 and thensearches for the program again 802. Once the interactive media guidanceapplication finds a version of the program, it determines whether thatversion has all required recording attributes 803, e.g., any regularrecording options, or any advanced recording options which are set to“required” as illustrated in 502 (FIG. 5). If the version does notpossess all the required attributes, the interactive media guidanceapplication returns to step 802 to determine if there are any otherpreviously unconsidered versions of the desired program in the immediateprogram listings. If not, the interactive media guidance applicationreturns to step 810 and waits until the program listings have beenupdated again. However, if the version does possess the requiredattributes, the interactive media guidance application then checks tosee if any prior recordings of the program exist in step 804.

The first time a program is found, there will be no prior recordings,and therefore the interactive media guidance application will proceed torecord the program in step 807. However, if the interactive mediaguidance application determines that there have been prior recordings instep 804, then it will proceed to determine whether the present versionof the program is more preferred than the prior recordings in step 805.Only if the recording is more preferred in step 805, or a preferredmultiple copy in step 806, will the interactive media guidanceapplication proceed to record the program in step 807. Otherwise, theinteractive media guidance application will again return to step 802 todetermine if there are any other previously unconsidered versions of thedesired program in the immediate program listings. If not, theinteractive media guidance application returns to step 810 and waitsuntil the program listings have been updated again.

After a program is recorded in step 807, the interactive media guidanceapplication will delete the less-preferred prior recording in step 808,i.e. will replace the prior recording with the newer more-preferredrecording. The interactive media guidance application will thendetermine in step 809 if the current recording is the most preferred, oroptimal, version. Similarly, if an attribute is preferred in multiplecopies, the interactive media guidance application will determine instep 809, for each variant of the attribute which is preferred inmultiple copies, whether the preferred multiple copy having that variantis the most preferred version with respect to its other recordingattributes. Where the optimal copy or copies have been recorded, theinteractive media guidance application will proceed to step 811 and stopsearching for the desired program. However, where the optimal copy orcopies have not all been recorded, the interactive media guidanceapplication will return to step 802 to determine if there are any otherpreviously unconsidered versions of the desired program in the immediateprogram listings. If not, the interactive media guidance applicationreturns to step 810 and waits until the program listings have beenupdated again.

FIG. 8 is only meant to show one embodiment of the present invention. Asnoted above, the steps may be rearranged in several different ways toachieve the same result. For example, steps 807 and 808 may be combinedso as to record the new version directly on top of the prior recording.Similarly, step 802 may take required recording attributes into account,thereby obviating the need for step 803. If user equipment 110 includesmultiple tuners, steps may be performed in parallel. Additionally, insome embodiments, before an optimal copy or copies has been obtained,the user may be given the choice to either continue or stop recordingmore-preferred versions.

The above processes for recording and replacing based on preferredrecording attributes, may apply to an individual program or a series.When applied to a series, steps 801-811 would be executed separately foreach episode of the series. In addition, in any of the above processes,if a recording is made, it may be recorded on storage device 116, on aremote storage (e.g., network DVR), or any other suitable location.

FIG. 9 shows a flow chart of an illustrative process for determiningwhether one version of a program is more preferred than priorrecordings. In step 901, the interactive media guidance applicationcompares the highest preference attribute of the present version withthat of the prior recording or recordings, i.e. if the present versionhas the attribute with preference “1,” it would be more preferred than aprior recording which only has the attribute with preference “2.” If thepresent version's highest preference attribute is of a higher rankingthan that of the prior recording or recordings, then the interactivemedia guidance application will set to record the present version instep 904. Otherwise, the interactive media guidance application willthen determine 902 whether the present version's highest preferenceattribute is equal to that of the prior recording or recordings. If not,this version is less preferred than prior recordings, and theinteractive media guidance application will stop its comparison 903.

If the present version's highest preference attribute is of equal rankto that of the prior recording or recordings, the interactive mediaguidance application will then determine 905 if the present recordinghas any other preferred attributes. If not, then the prior recordingsare at least of equal preference to the present version, and there is noneed to record the present version and the interactive media guidanceapplication will stop its comparison 909. However, if the presentversion does possess other preferred attributes, the interactive mediaguidance application will repeat the same comparisons for the next mostpreferred attribute starting with step 906.

In step 906, the interactive media guidance application compares thenext most preferred attribute of the present version with that of theprior recording or recordings. If the present version's next mostpreferred attribute is of a higher ranking than that of the priorrecording or recordings, then the interactive media guidance applicationwill set to record the present version in step 910. Otherwise, theinteractive media guidance application will then determine 907 whetherthe present version's next most preferred attribute is equal to that ofthe prior recording or recordings. If not, this version is lesspreferred than prior recordings, and the interactive media guidanceapplication will stop its comparison 908.

If the present version's highest preference attribute is of equal rankto that of the prior recording or recordings, the interactive mediaguidance application will return to step 905 to determine if the presentrecording has any other preferred attributes. The interactive mediaguidance application will repeat this process until it determines thatthe present version is more preferred than the prior recording orrecordings 910, less preferred 908, or there are no more preferredattributes to compare 909.

The above processes for determining whether one version of a program ismore preferred than prior recordings, may apply to an individual programor a series. When applied to a series, steps 901-910 would be executedseparately for each episode of the series. In addition, in any of theabove processes, if a recording is made, it may be recorded on storagedevice 116, on a remote storage (e.g., network DVR), or any othersuitable location.

The above described embodiments of the present invention are presentedfor purposes of illustration and not of limitation, and the presentinvention is limited only by the claims which follow. Furthermore, allof the flow charts and processes described above are illustrative. Stepsmay be added or removed to any of the flow charts, and steps may beperformed in a different order.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for recording programs with aninteractive media guidance application comprising: receiving a userselection of a program for recording, the selection specifying a userpreference to record the program with or without commercials; retrievingmedia guidance information data for the program from memory; followingreceipt of the user selection of the program for recording,automatically determining, from the media guidance application data,whether a version of the program matches the user preference; and whenthe version of the program is determined from the media guidance data tomatch the user preference, automatically scheduling a recording of theversion of the program on a recording device in accordance with the userselection, when no version of the program is determined from the mediaguidance data to match the user preference, searching updated mediaguidance data for the version of the program that matches the userpreference after the media guidance data is updated.
 2. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the interactive media guidance application is aninteractive television program guide implemented on a set-top box.
 3. Amethod for recording programs with an interactive media guidanceapplication comprising: receiving a user selection of a program forrecording, the selection specifying a user preference to record theprogram with a particular aspect ratio; retrieving media guidanceinformation data for the program from memory; following receipt of theuser selection of the program for recording, automatically determining,from the media guidance application data, whether a version of theprogram matches the user preference; and when the version of the programis determined from the media guidance data to match the user preference,automatically scheduling a recording of the version of the program on arecording device in accordance with the user selection, when no versionof the program is determined from the media guidance data to match theuser preference, searching updated media guidance data for the versionof the program that matches the user preference after the media guidancedata is updated.
 4. The method of claim 3 wherein the interactive mediaguidance application is an interactive television program guideimplemented on a set-top box.
 5. A method for recording programs with aninteractive media guidance application comprising: receiving a userselection of a program for recording, the selection specifying a userpreference to record a director's cut of the program; retrieving mediaguidance information data for the program from memory; following receiptof the user selection of the program for recording, automaticallydetermining, from the media guidance application data, whether a versionof the program matches the user preference; and when the version of theprogram is determined from the media guidance data to match the userpreference, automatically scheduling a recording of the version of theprogram on a recording device in accordance with the user selection,when no version of the program is determined from the media guidancedata to match the user preference, searching updated media guidance datafor the version of the program that matches the user preference afterthe media guidance data is updated.
 6. The method of claim 5 wherein theinteractive media guidance application is an interactive televisionprogram guide implemented on a set-top box.
 7. A method for recordingprograms with an interactive media guidance application comprising:receiving a user selection of a program for recording, the selectionspecifying a user preference to record a rated or unrated version of theprogram; retrieving media guidance information data for the program frommemory; following receipt of the user selection of the program forrecording, automatically determining, from the media guidanceapplication data, whether a version of the program matches the userpreference; and when the version of the program is determined from themedia guidance data to match the user preference, automaticallyscheduling a recording of the version of the program on a recordingdevice in accordance with the user selection, when no version of theprogram is determined from the media guidance data to match the userpreference, searching updated media guidance data for the version of theprogram that matches the user preference after the media guidance datais updated.
 8. The method of claim 7 wherein the interactive mediaguidance application is an interactive television program guideimplemented on a set-top box.
 9. A method for recording programs with aninteractive media guidance application comprising: receiving a userinput from a user input device identifying a program to be recorded andallowing the user to select a first recording attribute as being eitherrequired, preferred, or preferred in multiple copies, and allowing theuser to select a second recording attribute as being preferred, orpreferred in multiple copies; retrieving media guidance information datafor the program from memory; following receipt of the user inputidentifying the program to be recorded, automatically determining, fromthe media guidance application data, whether any versions of the programhave all required program attributes in accordance with the user input;determining, from the media guidance application data, whether anyversions of the program have one or more preferred program attributes inaccordance with the user input; in response to the determination that aversion of the program has all required program attributes,automatically recording on a recording device at least one version ofthe program with all required program attributes in accordance with theuser input; and in response to the determination that a version of theprogram has one or more preferred program attributes, automaticallyrecording on a recording device at least one additional version of theprogram with all required program attributes and at least one preferredprogram attribute of equal or greater preference when compared to anyprior recorded version or versions of the program.
 10. The method ofclaim 9, further comprising deleting any prior recorded version of aprogram with preferred program attributes of equal or lesser preference.11. The method of claim 10, further comprising deleting any priorrecorded version of a program with the same variant of a programattribute which is preferred in multiple copies, and with preferredprogram attributes of equal or lesser preference.
 12. The method ofclaim 9, wherein receiving a user identification of a second attributeas being preferred, comprises allowing a user to rank the relativepreference of a preferred attribute if more than one attribute ispreferred.
 13. The method of claim 9 wherein the interactive mediaguidance application continues searching for and recording versions ofthe program with all required program attributes, and at least onepreferred program attribute of equal or greater preference when comparedto any prior recorded version or versions, until the interactive mediaguidance application records a version of the program which possessesall required program attributes and all preferred program attributes.14. The method of claim 9 wherein the interactive media guidanceapplication is an interactive television program guide implemented on aset-top box.
 15. The method of claim 9 wherein one of the preferredprogram attributes indicates that the user prefers a program versionthat does or does not include commercials.
 16. The method of claim 9wherein one of the preferred program attributes indicates that the userprefers multiple copies of a program, comprising at least one versionwhich includes commercials and at least one version which does notinclude commercials.
 17. The method of claim 9 wherein one of thepreferred program attributes indicates that the user prefers that theprogram version have a particular aspect ratio.
 18. The method of claim9 wherein one of the preferred program attributes indicates that theuser prefers multiple copies of a program, comprising at least oneversion with each available aspect ratio.
 19. The method of claim 9wherein one of the preferred program attributes indicates that the userprefers that the program version is or is not a director's cut.
 20. Themethod of claim 9 wherein one of the preferred program attributesindicates that the user prefers multiple copies of a program, comprisingat least one version which is a director's cut and at least one versionwhich is not a director's cut.
 21. The method of claim 9 wherein one ofthe preferred program attributes indicates that the user prefers thatthe program version is or is not unrated.
 22. The method of claim 9wherein one of the preferred program attributes indicates that the userprefers multiple copies of a program, comprising at least one versionwhich is unrated and at least one version which is not unrated.
 23. Asystem for recording programs with an interactive media guidanceapplication comprising: a user input device; a recording device; andcontrol circuitry configured to: receive, with the user input device, auser selection of a program for recording, the selection specifying auser preference to record the program with or without commercials;retrieve media guidance information data for the program from memory;following receipt of the user selection of the program for recording,automatically determine, from the media guidance application data,whether a version of the program matches the user preference; and whenthe version of the program is determined from the media guidance data tomatch the user preference, automatically schedule a recording of theversion of the program on the recording device in accordance with theuser selection, when no version of the program is determined from themedia guidance data to match the user preference, search updated mediaguidance data for the version of the program that matches the userpreference after the media guidance data is updated.
 24. The system ofclaim 23 wherein the interactive media guidance application is aninteractive television program guide implemented on a set-top box.
 25. Asystem for recording programs with an interactive media guidanceapplication comprising: a user input device; a recording device; andcontrol circuitry configured to: receive, with the user input device, auser selection of a program for recording, the selection specifying auser preference to record the program with particular aspect ratio;retrieve media guidance information data for the program from memory;following receipt of the user selection of the program for recording,automatically determine, from the media guidance application data,whether a version of the program matches the user preference; and whenthe version of the program is determined from the media guidance data tomatch the user preference, automatically schedule a recording of theversion of the program on the recording device in accordance with theuser selection, when no version of the program is determined from themedia guidance data to match the user preference, search updated mediaguidance data for the version of the program that matches the userpreference after the media guidance data is updated.
 26. The system ofclaim 25 wherein the interactive media guidance application is aninteractive television program guide implemented on a set-top box.
 27. Asystem for recording programs with an interactive media guidanceapplication comprising: a user input device; a recording device; andcontrol circuitry configured to: receive, with the user input device, auser selection of a program for recording, the selection specifying auser preference to record a director's cut of the program; retrievemedia guidance information data for the program from memory; followingreceipt of the user selection of the program for recording,automatically determine, from the media guidance application data,whether a version of the program matches the user preference; and whenthe version of the program is determined from the media guidance data tomatch the user preference, automatically schedule a recording of theversion of the program on the recording device in accordance with theuser selection, when no version of the program is determined from themedia guidance data to match the user preference, search updated mediaguidance data for the version of the program that matches the userpreference after the media guidance data is updated.
 28. The system ofclaim 27 wherein the interactive media guidance application is aninteractive television program guide implemented on a set-top box.
 29. Asystem for recording programs with an interactive media guidanceapplication comprising: a user input device; a recording device; andcontrol circuitry configured to: receive, with the user input device, auser selection of a program for recording, the selection specifying auser preference to record a rated or unrated version of the program;retrieve media guidance information data for the program from memory;determine, after the user selection is received, from the media guidanceapplication data, whether a version of the program matches the userpreference; and when the version of the program is determined from themedia guidance data to match the user preference, record the version ofthe program on the recording device in accordance with the userselection, when no version of the program is determined from the mediaguidance data to match the user preference, search updated mediaguidance data for the version of the program that matches the userpreference after the media guidance data is updated.
 30. The system ofclaim 29 wherein the interactive media guidance application is aninteractive television program guide implemented on a set-top box.
 31. Asystem for recording programs with an interactive media guidanceapplication comprising: a user input device; a recording device; andcontrol circuitry configured to: receive a user input from the userinput device identifying a program to be recorded and allowing the userto select a first recording attribute as being either required,preferred, or preferred in multiple copies, and allowing the user toselect a second recording attribute as being preferred, or preferred inmultiple copies; retrieve media guidance information data for theprogram from memory; following receipt of the user input identifying theprogram to be recorded, automatically determine, from the media guidanceapplication data, whether any versions of the program have all requiredprogram attributes in accordance with the user input; determine, fromthe media guidance application data, whether any versions of the programhave one or more preferred program attributes in accordance with theuser input; in response to the determination that a version of theprogram has all required program attributes, automatically record on therecording device at least one version of the program with all requiredprogram attributes in accordance with the user input; and in response tothe determination that a version of the program has one or morepreferred program attributes, automatically record on the recordingdevice at least one additional version of the program with all requiredprogram attributes and at least one preferred program attribute of equalor greater preference when compared to any prior recorded version orversions of the program.
 32. The system of claim 31, the controlcircuitry further configured to delete any prior recorded version of aprogram with preferred program attributes of equal or lesser preference.33. The system of claim 32, the control circuitry further configured todelete any prior recorded version of a program with the same variant ofa program attribute which is preferred in multiple copies, and withpreferred program attributes of equal or lesser preference.
 34. Thesystem of claim 31, the control circuitry further configured to receivea user identification designating a rank indicating the relativepreference of a preferred attribute if more than one attribute ispreferred.
 35. The system of claim 31, the control circuitry furtherconfigured to continue searching for and recording versions of theprogram with all required program attributes, and at least one preferredprogram attribute of equal or greater preference when compared to anyprior recorded version or versions, until the interactive media guidanceapplication records a version of the program which possesses allrequired program attributes and all preferred program attributes. 36.The system of claim 31, wherein the interactive media guidanceapplication is an interactive television program guide implemented on aset-top box.
 37. The system of claim 31, the control circuitry furtherconfigured to receive a user input from the user input devicedesignating that the user prefers a program version that does or doesnot include commercials.
 38. The system of claim 31, the controlcircuitry further configured to receive a user input from the user inputdevice indicating that the user prefers multiple copies of a program,comprising at least one version which includes commercials and at leastone version which does not include commercials.
 39. The system of claim31, the control circuitry further configured to receive a user inputfrom the user input device designating that the user prefers a programversion that has a particular aspect ratio.
 40. The system of claim 31,the control circuitry further configured to receive a user input fromthe user input device indicating that the user prefers multiple copiesof a program, comprising at least one version with each available aspectratio.
 41. The system of claim 31, the control circuitry furtherconfigured to receive a user input from the user input devicedesignating that the user prefers a program version that is or is not adirector's cut.
 42. The system of claim 31, the control circuitryfurther configured to receive a user input from the user input deviceindicating that the user prefers multiple copies of a program,comprising at least one version which is a director's cut and at leastone version which is not a director's cut.
 43. The system of claim 31,the control circuitry further configured to receive a user input fromthe user input device designating that the user prefers a programversion that is or is not unrated.
 44. The system of claim 31, thecontrol circuitry further configured to receive a user input from theuser input device indicating that the user prefers multiple copies of aprogram, comprising at least one version which is unrated and at leastone version which is not unrated.